The house of secrets
by FriendsLovers
Summary: What if your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, on a lonely highway, and the only place in miles is an old abandoned house?
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: What if your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, on a lonely highway, and the only place in miles is an old abandoned house?**

**Author's note: ****Thank you so much to my wonderful beta Mariekjj!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anyone. I don't own CSI:NY.**

**Pairings: DL**

**Rating: T**

**Categories: Romance/Supernatural  
**

It was a dark, cold night in winter. Only the pale moon and thousands of stars where shining down onto the thick forest, making the white snow sparkle. It wasn't even 8:00 pm, but the sky was already pitch-black. A huge van was driving on the endless highway, leading through the forest. A team of eight CSI's, coming from New York, were on their way for their vacation. After weeks of working hard, shift after shift, they needed this time-out more than anything else. They all were very tired, even Mac, who was driving the car. No one else was on the street this night, the car they had seen had been a truck, and this had been around an hour ago. They were alone.

Lindsay, who was looking out of her window, couldn't help but feeling a little nervous. Usually she wasn't somebody who was afraid when she was out in the darkness of the night, especially not when she wasn't alone. But this was different. She threw a short glance at Danny who was sitting next to her. He had fallen asleep, like Flack and Adam as well, his head almost resting on her shoulder. A light smile appeared on Lindsay's lips. After so many days of working, they really needed this vacation. Finally they would have some time to spend it together. Okay, the others, who still didn't know that the two of them were already dating for three months now, were there, too, but they'd get some free time.

"Hey Mac," Hawkes suddenly interrupted the silence, with a low voice to not wake the others up. "When will we finally reach our target?"-

"One more hour," Mac answered, not taking his eyes away from the street.

Lindsay leant back in her seat, closing her eyes. One more hour? She wasn't sure if shed be able to stay awake for such a long time. So she made herself comfortable in her seat, ready to sleep for the rest of the time. She was almost fallen asleep, when she could feel how the car became slower and slower, until it suddenly stopped. A little confused, she opened her eyes again, wondering if she was only dreaming that. But she fast noticed that they indeed had stopped. Mac was just leaving the car, followed by Hawkes.

"What has happened?" Lindsay asked Peyton and Stella, who also were awake.

"No idea," Stella answered. "Must be something with the car. It became slower and slower."

Lindsay let out a quiet sigh. Wonderful. Hopefully the car hadn't broken down, she really didn't want to stick her somewhere nowhere on this lonely highway, having no idea where exactly they were. She again looked at Danny, just in time so notice that he also was waking up now. He opened his eyes, blinked a few times and then looked at his girlfriend, a little confused.

"Are we already there?" He asked with a very sleepy voice. Lindsay shook her head.

"No, the car suddenly stopped, but we have no idea why. Mac and Sheldon are looking for the reason," she answered.

"Hm, great, wake me up when we are there," he just replied, closing his eyes again, but was instantly interrupted by Mac who entered the car again, a worried look on his face.

"I think we have a problem," he said. "Looks like the car totally broke down. We have already tried to call for help, but our cells are not working here with all the trees surrounding us."-

"That means?" Peyton asked, although they already could imagine what this meant. Mac sighed deeply.

"Well, there's not much we could do," he answered. "We could stay here in the car, waiting for someone who could help us, but as you know, it's been a long time ago since we saw the last driver on this street. The other possibility is that we leave the car and try to find help on our own. As far as I know, there's an old house, not far away from here. I have no idea, if someone is living there, but we at least could maybe spend the night there." He looked at his colleagues, two of them still asleep. They all were not very happy about that- no surprise. Walking through this darkness, and when it was so cold was nothing people liked to do when they were tired. But they also knew that sitting here wouldn't help them at all, maybe they had to wait for hours until maybe someone would pass them, and even that meant nothing.

"How far away is this house?" Danny asked, still so tired that she almost couldn't keep his eyes open.

"I have a map. From what I know, hmm, maybe half an hour to walk. The next city is much further away."-

"Looks like we have no other chance, huh?" Danny replied, sitting up in his seat. "So, if you want to know what I think, we should go now. The faster we reach this house, the faster we can sleep again."

The others agreed, although none of them wanted to get out of the warm car to walk half an hour to this old house. After they had managed to wake up Flack and Adam, the eight took their suitcases with them, starting for their long walk through the loneliness.

The walk next to the highway was much more exhausting than they had expected. They were all carrying their heavy suitcases, not wanting to leave them behind in the car. The snow at the edges of the street was very slippery and the strong, icy wind which was blowing made them shudder. Lindsay still could feel that she was nervous. There was this tension, present everywhere. She had no idea what it was, but it made her more and more uncomfortable with every minute she was walking. Danny, who was walking next to her, threw several short glances at her.

"Everything okay with you?" He then whispered into her ear.

"I don't know," Lindsay answered, also whispering. "But I... I just feel so... I have no idea how to describe it. I know, it sounds weird, but I'm not sure if its good that we are here now." Danny rose his eyebrows, not sure if he understood what she meant.

"Why do you think that it's not good?" Lindsay shook her head again.

"Danny, I have no idea. Its just a... feeling. Forget what I said," she then said. Danny nodded. But he could clearly feel that his girlfriend was worrying about something. Well, she'd tell him about that later, he thought. And maybe she'd feel better when they finally reached this house.

After the team had walked through the darkness for around half hour, Mac suddenly stopped. When the others reached the place where he was standing, they noticed that another, much smaller road went from the highway over into the forest.

"This road will lead us to the house," Mac said. "Only a few more minutes."

When Stella followed the small road with her eyes, her eyes went wide. "What?" she asked, a light fearful tone in her voice. "You don't really want to tell us that we have to follow this road? Directly into the forest?" She looked at Peyton who had the same fearful look on her face. Hawkes stepped behind Stella, resting one hand on her shoulder.

"Don't be afraid, Stella. We are all here to protect you," he answered. Stella just rolled her eyes, but anyway followed Mac and the others into the deep forest.

Mac had been right. After a few more minutes, they could already see the huge, old house standing in front of them on a clearance. When Lindsay first saw the building, she instantly thought that it looked like one of these houses she had seen so many times in horror movies. The closer they came to the house, the more she could feel her heart beating faster, confusing her. What was going on with her? Was she really afraid because of this house? She was not a child anymore. And she was not alone.

"Wow, nice place," Danny said, setting down his suitcase when they were standing only a few feet away from the giant house. "Looks like a real ghost house."

This was indeed true. The house was very old, built out of dark stones, moss growing everywhere on the front. The huge windows with the dusty glass were looking like huge, black holes. Yes, obviously there was indeed nobody living in this house, and it looked like it was left for several years.

"Okay, then lets have a look if we can stay there at least for this night," Mac said, starting to walk towards the house, the others following him more or less hesitating. If they were all honest, none really liked the idea of entering this house, or even spending the night there. But if they hadn't already been tired in the car earlier, they were it now, after the exhausting walk through the snow.

Mac was the first who reached the huge, wooden door. He knocked at it a few times, although it was already clear that nobody was living here. When after the third time the door still stayed closed, Mac pushed the door handle down. With a loud and horrible shriek, the door went open, exposing the hallway.

"So, where can we switch on the lights?" Adam asked. When the others laughed, he looked surprised. "What?" -

"This house doesn't look like someone lived in here during the last years," Flack answered. "So tell me, who would have paid the electricity bill?" While Adam looked at Flack with an annoyed look, Mac had already pulled something out of his bag. When the room suddenly lightened up, they noticed that he was holding a flashlight.

With a smile at his colleagues, Mac said: "So, now we have light, what do you say? Looks like we'll spend the night here, lets have a look for a place to sleep."-

"Sounds fantastic," Danny replied, picking his suitcase up again. Then his look fell on Lindsay. The look on her eyes instantly caught his attention.

"Are you sure that you are okay?" He asked her. Lindsay, who obviously had been deep in her thoughts, shook her head.

"What? Oh, sure," she answered.

"So what are you waiting for? Lets go," Danny replied, and with a much lower voice added, "We should hurry if we want one of the good rooms with a huge bed." Lindsay just nodded, following him. She had no idea why, but something about the whole night left her with a bad feeling. Something in this area was strange. And now this house. Lindsay knew that what she was thinking was maybe crazy. But she couldn't do anything against the feeling that entering this house had been a very bad idea.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: Wow, thanks for all your reviews and the story alerts!**

**Thanks to my wonderful beta Mariekjj for her help!**

Mac had handed seven more flashlights to his colleagues. It was very cold inside the house, a wet, old smell sticking in every inch of the tall walls. It was dark, and although they all had flashlights, there was still not enough light. Until Hawkes discovered something.

"Hey," he said, pointing at one of the walls. "Does someone have fire? If we lighten up these torches at the walls, we should have enough light."-

"Good idea," Mac agreed, instantly pulling a lighter out of his jacket pocket.

"Looks like our boss is prepared for every situation, huh?" Danny whispered into Lindsay's ear. Lindsay tried to smile, but wasn't really successful. Although they at least weren't standing in the dark anymore, she still felt uncomfortable. If she only knew why? But there was something strange in this house.

Lindsay let her eyes wander through the room they were standing in. The hallway was huge. Broad stairs were leading upstairs onto the first floor. The floor and stairs were made out of grey marble, some of the dirty, dusty plates were broken. On the walls were hanging paintings, most of the showing portraits of persons. Lindsay noticed that on almost every picture she could see the same two persons, two women. When Lindsay looked a little closer at them, she suddenly could feel shivers running up and down her spine. She couldn't understand herself anymore. _Hello? These are nothing else than paintings! _She told herself, but she anyway couldn't deny that these paintings were different from all the others she had ever seen before. When she suddenly heard Mac's voice, she almost jumped.

"I think, the best is when we split up in small groups, maybe always two persons together, so we can discover more of this house in a shorter time," Mac said.

"Good idea!" Danny instantly answered and then said to Lindsay, "So, what do you say? You want to be my partner?"-

"Sure," Lindsay answered. When she saw the light grin on his face and the look he gave her, she couldn't help but chuckle. It was always the same with him, he used every possibility to be alone with her.

"Good. We'll look what's upstairs," Danny then announced, picking up his suitcase again to pull it up the stairs.

When Danny and Lindsay reached the first floor, Lindsay started to lighten up the torches they found there. After they had left the gallery, they entered a small corridor, doors at both sides of the walls. Lindsay again noticed paintings, looking like the ones downstairs. She wondered who the two women were. Maybe they had lived in this house earlier? Lindsay also noticed how similar they looked. Maybe they were sisters? Danny, who had already noticed Lindsay's interested look, stepped next to her.

"Nice paintings," he said. "Is there a special reason why you are staring at them like this?"-

"No, it's just…" Lindsay answered, her eyes still focusing on one of the pictures. "There's something special in this pictures. Don't you see that?" Danny moved a little closer, narrowing his eyes. Trying to find out what she was seeing in the painting.

"No, I have no idea what you mean," he then said. Lindsay threw a short glance at him, sighing. Obviously she was the only one who could feel the tension in this house. Danny went a few step further, before he stopped next to one of the doors in the wall, right next to the picture.

"Maybe we should look what's behind one of these doors. I'm sure we can find a nice place to spend the night there," he said.

"Sure, open the door," Lindsay replied. Danny did what she had told him. He carefully pushed the door handle down and opened the door, which again made a horrible noise, like the front door earlier. The room again was dark, but there were two torches next to the door, and Lindsay lit them. When the warm light of them lightened up the room, Lindsay's and Danny's eyes went wide.

"Wow," Danny just said, going further into the room. Lindsay followed him slowly, closing the door behind them. It was a big room, almost as big as Lindsay's living room, and what surprised her most was what they could find in it. There was a huge bed standing, a thick, red blanket on top of it, covered with white dust. They also found a huge cupboard, a small table and two chairs. They felt as if they were standing in a museum, they furniture looked like it was more than a hundred years old.

"Okay, this will definitely be our room." Danny said, inspecting the rest of the room.

Lindsay just wanted to reply to that, but closed her mouth immediately. She suddenly felt an ice cold breeze hitting her, tangling in her hair and her clothes. Lindsay wondered where it was coming from. The door and the windows were closed.

"Did you feel that?" She asked. Danny looked at her surprised.

"What?" He asked.

"This… this cold breeze," Lindsay stammered. Danny shook his head. Lindsay again sighed deeply. This whole situation became more and more mysterious with every moment. Why was she the only one who was feeling that something was wrong with this house? Or was she just totally crazy? At this moment, Lindsay didn't know that she absolutely was not crazy, and that her friends would soon believe her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: Thanks for your reviews! And thank you so much to my beta Mariekjj for helping me!**

Lindsay was still standing there in front of Danny, not believing what was going on. Danny looked at her with a concerned look.

"Baby, are you okay?" He asked, walking over to her. "You are acting like this for the whole time now. What has happened?" But Lindsay only shook her head.

"You'll only think that I'm totally crazy," she answered.

"No, I won't, and you know that," Danny replied, stepping a little closer, looking straight into her eyes. "So please tell me, what's on your mind?" Lindsay sighed deeply, holding eye contact with Danny, until she looked away. She knew that she could talk to him about everything. But, seriously, what was it she had to talk about? What was her problem?

"Okay, I'll try to explain it," Lindsay then started, hoping that he wouldn't think that she was totally insane. "When we were on this highway, driving through this forest, I already had this feeling. I don't now what it is, but I felt so…so uncomfortable. I knew that something would happen, and then our car broke down. I thought, wow, could it get any worse? And yes, it could. Because then we walked to this house here, and believe me or not, but since we are here, I feel even more uncomfortable. Maybe I have watched too many horror movies, but…but something is wrong with this house. This strange tension, it's sticking everywhere, in every inch of this building. And especially in this paintings. I asked you if you could see something in them, and I asked you that, because I can see something. I still don't know what it is, but…but there is something in them which makes them…special. I don't know how to explain it. And then there was this breeze, so cold, and you didn't feel it," after she had ended, Lindsay looked again into Danny's eyes, afraid about what he now was thinking about her. Was there any chance that he could understand her? With surprise she noticed that he didn't look at her as if she was crazy. No, he looked at her with a serious look on his face.

"So what do you think is happening here?" He asked.

"I wish I knew," Lindsay answered with a deep sigh. "But I have absolutely no idea." Danny nodded. There was silence between them, both just looking at each other.

"Do you think I'm freaking out?" Lindsay then asked with a low voice. She didn't only ask that because she wanted to know what he was thinking, she also asked herself - was she freaking out? She didn't believe in ghost stories. And that it was spooking in this house? This was just too…supernatural?

"No, you are not freaking out," Danny answered, taking one of her hands in his. "Lindsay, I can't really tell you what's happening here. I mean, if I'm honest, I also didn't have a good feeling when we entered this house. It's old, and we have no idea how long it's empty now, or who had lived her before, or what had happened here. Maybe…maybe you are just…overreacting, because I have to admit that it's really spooky. But I know you so well, and…and maybe you are right. I believe you that you are having these strange feelings. I didn't have them yet, but who knows, maybe this'll change. All I can say right now is, that you are not alone here. I have no idea if there's something wrong with this house or not, but I promise, I'll take care for you, and if you feel something strange again, just tell me about it, okay?"-

"Okay," Lindsay answered, incredibly relieved that he had reacted like this. And maybe she was indeed just overreacting. This was a spooky place. But no matter what was happening here, Lindsay was glad that she could feel Danny believed her, and that he had offered her to listen to her.

When Danny embraced her tight, she could feel how she started to calm down again. While they were standing like this for a while, they could suddenly hear voices coming from the corridor. They instinctively pulled away.

"These are Stella and Hawkes," Danny said. "I'll tell them what we found and that we'll take this room." With that he went over to the door, but turned around to her again. "Oh, and I won't tell them why we want to share a room, okay?" Lindsay couldn't help but grin.

After Danny had left the room, Lindsay started to discover what else was in the room. She threw a short glance over to one of the dirty windows, when she suddenly noticed something. First she was unsure. Had she really seen something at one of the thick, heavy curtains? She narrowed her eyes, focusing on the place, and almost jumped when she again saw a light movement. Her eyes went wide. This time she indeed had seen something. But what the hell was that? Lindsay slowly went over to the curtain. It didn't move anymore, but she anyway wanted to know what she had seen. Maybe a mouse or a rat? Could be possible, this was a really old building. When she had reached the curtain, she carefully bent down, pulling it away a little. She was concentrated, noticing that her heart started to beat faster.

And then it happened. When Lindsay pulled a little bit more at the curtain, she suddenly felt the light touch of a hand on her shoulder. Expecting that Danny had returned, she turned around, only to notice that she was still alone. But she had felt this touch; she had felt it so clear. Lindsay just opened her mouth to call Danny, when she again felt this cold, icy breeze, making her shudder. This time it was much stronger. Colder. And more frightening. Without even knowing it Lindsay let out a shriek. The door immediately went open and Danny, Stella and Hawkes entered the room.

"What happened?" Danny asked, rushing over to his girlfriend who was still standing at the window with a pale face. He closed her in his arms, feeling that she was shivering.

Lindsay cuddled tight against Danny's chest. She was now sure that what here was happening was not normal. She had felt the touch of a hand on her shoulder, but there had been nobody in the room. And again this cold breeze. What was happening inside this house?


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: Thanks for reviewing! And thanks to my beta Mariekjj!**

Danny was holding Lindsay in his arms, not paying any attention to Hawkes and Stella who were also in the room and who actually still didn't know that the two were together. He could feel that she was shivering, and her face had an unusual pale tone. He had been out for maybe one or two minutes, what had happened in this time? What had scared her so much? Danny gently stoked over Lindsay's hair, holding her tight.

"Hey, what happened?" He whispered.

"I'm totally freaking out, Danny," Lindsay answered, her voice shaking.

"No, you are not," Danny whispered back. Then he finally realized his two colleagues standing only a few feet away, looking at them. "Erm, well, would you maybe leave us alone for a moment? You could already look what's in the other rooms. I'll look what Lindsay found in this room, okay?" He hoped that this was enough to get them out of the room so that he could talk alone to her. He hoped that they wouldn't ask more questions, especially not about his and Lindsay's behaviour. And indeed.

"Okay. We'll see you later then." Hawkes answered. Stella said nothing, just gave them a last look, before she followed Hawkes out of the room. Danny wasn't sure what this look meant- did she know? But honestly, this wasn't really important right now. More important now was what had happened to his girlfriend.

"So, now tell me what happened, okay?" He said after Stella had closed the door behind her. Lindsay, still her head resting against his chest, just shook her head.

"It's...it's nothing; I just have the feeling that I'm totally freaking out since I'm here. I see things that are not there, I feel things that are not there. "-

"What did you see or feel this time?" Lindsay let out a deep sigh. Should she really tell him that she was thinking someone touched her although nobody was in the room? And that she was scared because of a cold breeze? But from the way he treated her, she knew that he wouldn't tell her that she obviously was insane. And he had told her to talk to him earlier.

"When you left the room, I noticed something moving behind this curtain over there. First I thought I just imagined that there was something, but then I saw it again. I wanted to know what it was, maybe a mouse or a rat, and so I walked over to the place. And when I then pulled the curtain away to look what was behind it, I...I suddenly could feel the touch of a hand on my shoulder. I first thought it was you, but when I turned around there was nobody. And then there...there was this...breeze again. It was even colder than the first time, and much stronger and... and it scared me. That's why I cried out. Sounds stupid, right?" Lindsay looked up at Danny and straight into his eyes. People could say a lot, but in their eyes you can see what they are really thinking. And especially in Danny's eyes Lindsay could read like in a book. She was expecting a lot of different looks, but the one he gave her not only surprised her but also relieved her. She didn't know why, but obviously Danny was indeed believing her.

"And you are sure that you felt a hand touching you?" Danny asked. Lindsay nodded.

"Yes. I know, it sounds strange, and I still can't believe it, but I know that it was a hand. But there was nobody," she answered. "Danny, I want to know what all this means. It's driving me crazy."-

"I wish I could tell you." Danny said, still a serious look in his eyes, gently stroking through her hair. "Do you think we should tell the others about it?"-

"No!" Lindsay instantly said. "No, of course not! They won't believe me anyway. And what should I tell them? That I believe that..." Lindsay stopped before she could finish the sentence.

"That you believe what?" Lindsay rolled her eyes, not wanting to tell him what she was thinking, because even she couldn't believe it herself.

"Danny, something strange is happening in this house. And what if...what if there are..." Lindsay again stopped. She wasn't able to speak out what she was thinking, because for her, as a scientist, this was just impossible. And saying that in front of another scientist was even more impossible. But the man standing in front of her, looking at her with this concerned look, wasn't only her co-worker, he also was her boyfriend.

"What if there are...ghosts in this house?" Lindsay finally spoke out what she was thinking. And before Danny could response anything to that, she added, "I know, most of us don't believe in ghost, at least not in the ones they are showing in horror movies, which come to show themselves. But...but at the moment it's my only explanation, and we can't tell the others about it! Especially not Mac."-

"Yes, maybe you are right with that." Danny answered. "Well, maybe it also will not happen again. But if this doesn't stop, we'll talk to them." Lindsay raised her eyebrows.

"Wait. Maybe I'm wrong, but am I right when I think that you believe me? And..."-

"That I also think here are ghosts?" Danny completed her question. When Lindsay nodded, he answered, "Lets say- actually I'm not sure if ghosts exist or not. As a scientist I'd say no, but, well, you never know. There are happening so many things between heaven and earth we can't explain, so why shouldn't they exist? I'm pretty sure you think about that the same way, and you wouldn't just tell me that you believe there are ghosts here when nothing happened that makes you believe that. I believe in what you've told me, and we'll see if this was just a coincidence or whatever, or if here's indeed happening something supernatural. But right now we shouldn't talk to the others." While listening to Danny, Lindsay's eyes widened with every word he was saying.

She knew that she and Danny had a really close relationship; they knew what the other was thinking without needing any words for it. It was a good feeling for her that Danny supported her so much and believed her, although she herself doubted her own thoughts. And she would soon learn that she would need this support more than she was expecting at the moment. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note: Thanks for reviewing! Lets have a look what happens next in the mysterious house. ;)**

A few minutes later, the whole team met again in the huge hall. They were sitting on the broad stairs, waiting for what Mac had to tell them.

"Okay, after we have inspected most parts of this house, we now know that there are enough rooms for us on the first floor. I'd suggest, that we go to bed now, it's late and we all could need some rest. Tomorrow we'll go back to our car, I'm sure there'll be much more cars on the highway then." He said.

While the others agreed with him, Danny looked at Lindsay, who was sitting next to him. She hadn't paid much attention to what Mac had told them. She was deep in her thoughts, staring onto the stairs in front of her. Her face was still pale, her eyes wide and frightened. Danny could clearly feel how his girlfriend felt right now, and he was sad because he could do nothing for her. Of course he was believing her, he definitely would never think that she was crazy and that she was telling him things which were not happening. Why should she? He had no idea what was happening in this house, and he still hoped that Lindsay maybe was just overreacting. But from the look on her face he could tell the opposite.

Danny gently touched Lindsay's hands to get her attention. When she looked at him, he smiled.

"You heard what Mac said? He said we should go into one of the rooms upstairs to sleep. I can see how tired you are, and I'm, too, so I think we really need some rest now. Maybe tomorrow everything is okay again, maybe you'll not feel these strange things again." He said. Lindsay sighed.

"Yes, I hope so. Okay, lets go to bed." Lindsay answered, standing up slowly. The others were already upstairs, which was an advantage for them because none of their co-workers would now notice that Danny and Lindsay would share one room. Danny had already told Stella and Hawkes that he wanted to stay in Lindsay's room, because she felt uncomfortable, and none of the two had said anything to that, because everyone in the team knew that they were very close. But they anyway didn't know that they were a couple, and maybe it was better if their other friends didn't see them going into the same room. They both were not in the mood for teasing.

When they reached the top of the stairs, Lindsay suddenly stopped. She had heard something, but wasn't sure what it was. It sounded like someone was whispering.

"Did you say something?" Lindsay asked Danny, who shook his head.

"No. Why?"-

"Oh, well, I thought…I'm sure it was just the wind." She answered, following him. Danny raised his eyebrows.

"You sure? Or did something happen again?" Lindsay looked at him, noticing the concerned look in his eyes again.

"No, there was nothing, everything's okay." She just said.

After Danny and Lindsay had entered their room, Danny pulled away the dusty, dirty blanket. He wanted to clean it a little, but Lindsay interrupted him.

"Danny, if I'm honest, I don't want to use this stuff here, I mean, sometime it belonged to someone else, and…well, I don't like the idea of using it." She said. Danny nodded, letting the blanket fall next to the bed.

"Okay." He replied. "Then lets use our jackets."

Another minute later, the two had already lain down on the huge bed. Danny could still feel that Lindsay hadn't calmed down yet. If this didn't change soon, she wouldn't be able to sleep, not even for a minute.

He couldn't wipe away this, but he at least could distract her a little. So Danny moved closer to her, placing a soft kiss on her lips.

"So, one night here, I have to say, that's much better than in a car." He said with a low voice, kissing her again. "And there's so much more we can do here instead of in the car." Lindsay chuckled, she exactly knew what was coming next.

While Danny's lips very travelling down her neck, leaving gentle kisses on their way down, she closed her eyes, trying to forget the feelings inside her, to just concentrate on what he was doing. He was right, being here now instead of being in the car indeed had its good sides. The feeling of his warm lips on her skin, his hands moving over her body, was exactly what she needed now. His idea of distracting her obviously was working.

But then there was it again. Lindsay opened her eyes. This time she was sure that she had heard something. But what was that? It hadn't been Danny, that was sure, she immediately would notice his voice. It more sounded like a female voice. _Come one, Lindsay, _she told herself. _Are you really thinking that you're hearing voices now? _She remembered that it had been very windy outside, maybe she was just hearing the sound of the wind blowing around the house. She tried to focus on Danny again, not believing that it indeed was possible that she was thinking about hearing someone whispering while he was doing such delicious things with her.

Lindsay closed her eyes again, trying to calm herself down. Everything is okay, she told herself.

But then she heard it again. Louder. Clearer. And this time she knew that it wasn't the wind. Within a second, Lindsay jumped out of the bed. This time she knew that it had been a female voice. And the words she had said were still echoing in her ears: "Help me."


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's note: Thanks for your reviews. Now there was this voice. But who was this?**

"Help me." The words the female voice had said were still echoing in Lindsay's ears.

"Montana, what the hell is going on with you?" Danny asked, shocked about his girlfriend's sudden reaction. But Lindsay didn't react. She was just standing there, staring on a place in front of her with huge, frightened eyes, her face pale.

"Lindsay?" Danny again tried to get her attention. "Lindsay, please look at me. And talk to me. Lindsay!" He could see tears rising in her eyes, but she still didn't react to him. It was as if she couldn't hear him. What could he do to get her attention when she even had totally forgotten that he was there?

"Who are you?" Lindsay then suddenly said with a shaky voice, tears now running down her cheeks. "And why are you talking to me? What do you want?"

Danny could clearly hear the desperation in her voice, and while listening to what she was saying, he was even more shocked. What was she talking about? And- more important- who was the one she was talking to? He decided to not wait until she maybe would finally hear him. Instead of that, Danny also jumped up from his bed, stepping in front of her, taking her face in his hands so that he could look into her eyes.

"Lindsay, what has happened? And what are you talking about? Please, talk to me!" He pleaded, looking straight into her eyes. And now Lindsay finally noticed him. But instead of answering his question, she started to cry even more. Seeing his girlfriend desperate like this almost broke Danny's heart. He carefully pulled her into his arms, feeling how she clung her arms around him, pressing herself tight against his chest.

"Shh, it's okay, I'm here." He whispered into her ear. This reaction was very similar to the one she had had earlier when she had told him that she had felt the touch of a hand on her shoulder. She had been frightened- no wonder. But now it seemed as if she was in panic. Danny tried to calm her down, talking to her with a low voice, hoping that she would stop crying, stop shivering. It took a while until Lindsay's sobs finally became quieter, until she was just resting against his chest a few minutes later.

"Can you now tell me what scared you so much?" Danny then asked, gently stroking up and down her spine. Lindsay shook her head.

"No, if I told you what happened, even you would think that I'm a crazy idiot." She answered with such a soft voice that Danny could hardly understand her. Danny sighed. What else could he do finally make her believe that he wouldn't think like this about her?

"Lindsay, you know that I'll never, never think that you're a crazy idiot, you should finally know that. No matter what it was, please tell me about it. How else could I help you?"-

"But…"-

"No 'but', Lindsay. Tell me what happened, and I promise to believe you."-

"You can't promise that. How?" Danny sighed again. Why the hell was this woman so stubborn?

"Lindsay, I...I love you, okay? And I believe everything you're telling me, because I know that you'd never lie. So, would you now please tell me what's going on here?" But instead of answering, Lindsay just stared at Danny, her eyes full of surprise.

"You…you love me?" She asked.

"Yes, sure. I love you." He answered. A light smile went onto her face.

"I love you, too." She answered. Danny couldn't help but smiling as well.

"That's wonderful. And so there's no reason why you shouldn't tell me what's happening here." Now it was Lindsay who sighed.

"Danny, look, I…I know it sounds…totally crazy, and when I first heard it, I couldn't believe it as well. But now I'm sure that I indeed heard it."-

"Wait. What did you hear?" Danny asked. Then he remembered that earlier, when they had been in the hall, Lindsay had asked him if he had said something, because she had heard something. She had told him that it had been the wind, but obviously it hadn't.

"I heard a…a voice. A female voice. When I first heard it in the hall, it indeed could have been the wind. Then, here, I heard it again, but I again thought that it must be the wind, because it wasn't you and here's no one else. But then I heard the whisper a third time. And this time I realized that…that it indeed was the voice of a woman. It…it's true, please, believe me, I'm not freaking out." Again tears were rising in Lindsay's eyes when she looked up at Danny, afraid of his reaction.

"What did she say?" Was his only response, his eyes still locked with hers.

"She said 'help me'. I know, it sounds like in a stupid horror movie, but…"-

"Lindsay." Danny interrupted her, causing that Lindsay instantly stopped talking. "Would you please finally stop doing that? Why do you always try to tell me that what you're feeling or hearing really happens? I never said that I don't believe you, so don't tell me the same over and over again. I haven't said something like this before, especially not when someone of the others is there, but, honestly, I believe that there's much more happening around us than we can imagine. Things we can't prove, things we maybe also don't want to believe. Lindsay, I believe every word you're telling me. Okay?" Lindsay, again surprised by what Danny was telling her, could jus nod.

"And…and what do you think now?" She asked.

"Well, the thing is- we're here for only a few more hours, only for this night. But if there's indeed someone who's calling for help, we maybe should find out who needs us." Danny answered. "I know, we decided to not talk about that, but maybe we should…"-

"No!" Lindsay instantly interrupted him. "No, we'll not do that. Danny, we have nothing, no evidence for what I'm telling you. You believe me, but do you really think the others would, too? I mean, if you heard the voice, too, okay. But I'm the only one, and…and what do you think what they'll say? That it's nothing, that I'm just afraid because of this house, that I'm just imagining this. Do you really think that anyone of them would believe me?"-

"Maybe not." Danny understood her. Maybe some of the others would believe her, but most of them would exactly say what she had said- that there's nothing happening, that she was just overreacting. "Okay, what else should we do now?"-

"I have no idea." Lindsay answered, resting her head back against his chest again. "I think we should just go back to bed. If the voice talks to me again, I'll immediately tell you, okay?" Danny nodded, already opening his mouth to response something, but was suddenly interrupted.

"Help me."

Danny could feel how Lindsay pressed herself tighter against him.

"Oh my god, I heard it again." She whispered, again with a shaky voice. She pulled back a little to look up at Danny, surprised when she saw how pale his face was now.

"I know." He answered when his eyes met hers. "Because this time I heard it, too."


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's note: Thanks for your reviews! Now both, Danny and Lindsay, are hearing the voice. But who is this woman? And what does she want? Just to warn you- it's a sad story.**

"What? You heard it, too?" Lindsay asked, not believing if she had understood him right. But Danny just nodded.

"Yes, I heard it. Loud and clear." He answered. "And I'll not wait any longer. We'll talk with the others. Now."-

"But Danny." Lindsay again interrupted him. "What do you want to say? Maybe…maybe we should do it in another way. Why don't we ask Mac about what else he knows about this house? I mean, he knew that it's here, right? I'm sure he has a few more informations. There must be a reason why nobody is living here for such a long time now. We should find out what has happened. And maybe we then can find out who's talking to us, okay?"-

"Okay." Danny finally agreed, and Lindsay sighed relieved. "Lets go to Mac, I hope he's not sleeping yet, otherwise we need a good excuse why we want to talk to him in the middle of the night."

With that, the two left their room again, heading to the room which they knew Mac had chosen for him and Peyton. They stopped in front of the door, both hesitating for a moment, not knowing if Mac was already sleeping or what else he was doing in there. But after taking a deep breath, Danny knocked on the door. A moment later, the door went open, Peyton looking at them with a confused look.

"Can I do something for you?" She asked when she noticed her two colleagues standing in front of her door.

"Erm, yes, we want to talk to Mac, or is he already asleep?" Danny asked. Peyton shook her head.

"No, he's not even here, he went downstairs because he can't sleep." She answered.

"Okay, thank you, Peyton. Have a good night."

After Peyton had closed her door again, Danny looked at Lindsay, who hadn't talked a word yet.

"Looks like we're not the only ones who can't sleep. Lets have a look where he is." He said. Lindsay nodded in agreement.

Together they started to search for Mac, what wasn't easy in the huge house with all the different corridors and doors. It was more a castle than a house. But then they finally found him, sitting in one of the huge rooms downstairs. The room must have been something like a living room before, several thick, red couches were standing everywhere. Mac was sitting on one of them.

"Hey Mac." Danny greeted his boss, who looked up at them and smiled. "You can't sleep?"-

"No." Mac answered while Danny and Lindsay sat down on another couch. "What about you two? I thought you were so tired." Danny and Lindsay shared a short look. Danny needed no words to see that Lindsay didn't want to tell their boss what the real reason was why they can't sleep.

"Well, it's…I'm not sure how to explain it." He then started. "This house is not a place where you like to sleep. A nice hotel would have been better." Mac laughed.

"Yes, I know what you mean. This is an old, abandoned house. But I thought it's more comfortable for you then sleeping in the car." The two nodded. Then it was silent again. Danny and Lindsay both were searching for the right words to ask what they actually wanted to know.

"Well, Mac." Lindsay then finally started, a little nervous. "You already knew that this house is here, but we didn't. Have you been here before?" Mac shook his head.

"No, but I heard some stories about this house and that it's here." Both Danny and Lindsay raised their eyebrows.

"Which stories?" They asked at the same time.

"People are telling a lot of stories about this house, that's why nobody wants to live here. But I think these are nothing more than ghost stories." Danny and Lindsay shared another look. Ghost stories?

"What are they telling?" Danny then asked. "I haven't heard about this house before." Mac just sighed.

"Well, it has something to do with the people who have lived here before. The last time someone lived in this house is more than hundred years ago. Two women, two sisters, have lived here, alone, for many years. Then, someday, one of the sisters, Mary, went into the city. When she came back home, her sister Ellen was gone, without leaving a note or something else. Mary then found blood in one of the bedrooms. She knew that something must have happened to her sister, and she started to search for her. When she didn't find any more hints where she could be, she talked to the police, and they also tried to find the woman. But after some months they still had no hints what could have happened or where Ellen could be, they stopped searching for her. Mary stayed in the house for a few more months, before she moved. People are telling different stories why she did that. Some are saying that she moved because everything was reminding her of her sister, the others are saying she left because the ghost of her sister is spooking in this building and she couldn't bear this anymore. Whatever the reason was, Mary never learnt to live with the fact that Ellen was gone and nobody could find her."-

"What a sad story." Danny said after Mac had ended. He threw a short glance at Lindsay, seeing that she was deep in her thoughts. She had listened to every word Mac had said, and now she looked so sad that Danny wished he could be alone with her now.

"Yes, indeed." Mac then replied, standing up. "I think I'll go to bed now, you two should do the same."-

"Yes, we'll do that. Have a good night, Mac." Danny answered.

When Mac had left the room, Danny gently put his arm around Lindsay's shoulders.

"Are you okay?" He asked. Lindsay nodded. Then she looked up at him.

"I think I know why this woman is talking to us." She said. Danny raised his eyebrows.

"And why?" He asked. Lindsay sighed deeply before she answered.

"I'm sure this voice belongs to one of this sisters." She answered. "I have no idea if it was Mary or Ellen. But I know what she wants. She wants that we'll help them to finally solve this case."


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's note: Thanks for reviewing!**

**And thanks to Mariekjj for beta'ing!**

"You want to do what?" Danny asked, not sure if he understood his girlfriend right. "You want to solve this case?"

Lindsay nodded. "Yes. Why not? I'm sure that's why they're talking to us."

"But how do you want to do that? This case is more than hundred years old, how do you want to find evidence? Or witnesses?"

"Danny, I'm sure we'll find a way." Lindsay said, trying to make clear what she was imagining. "Sure, it won't be easy, but…but there's a reason why we're hearing this voice. And I'm pretty sure that it's because she wants us to help her. Why else is she saying 'Help me'?"

Danny sighed deeply. Sure, he understood her, and if she was right, and the ghost of Mary or Ellen was indeed talking to them, asking them to help her, to solve this old case, he of course wanted to do this. But how?

"Danny, we always try to solve every case. Why not this one?" Lindsay tried it again.

"Yes…yes, okay, I still have no idea what you're planning, but I'll help you, you know that." Danny finally said. A light smile went on Lindsay's face, before she embraced him tightly.

"Thank you," she said. "So, what should we do first?"

"Well, I think, before we start to search for something somewhere in this huge house, what about we start in our bedroom? Where we heard the voice first?"

"Sounds good."

Together Danny and Lindsay went back upstairs where their bedroom was.

"Do you really think we should do this alone? Without telling the others?" Danny asked while walking up the stairs.

"Danny, I already told you what I think about that. What do you want to say, huh? That we're hearing voices? You have seen Mac's reaction when he told us about the story of this house. He doesn't believe in it, for him it's nothing more than a simple ghost story."

"Yes, maybe you're right." Although Danny was still thinking that it would be the best to talk to their colleagues about all what was happening in this house, he didn't want to do it without Lindsay's permission.

When the two reached their room, Lindsay suddenly felt shivers running up and down her spine. She didn't know why she was feeling like this now, but she couldn't help but thinking that something was already awaiting them. Danny opened the door, entering the room and then instantly stopped. Lindsay, walking directly behind him, almost ran into him.

"Danny, what happened?" She asked, trying to look over his shoulder. When she didn't see anything, she also stepped into the bedroom, also instantly stopping when she finally saw what Danny was staring at.

Nothing in the room was like it had been when they had left it a little earlier. Their jackets, which they had left on the bed, were now lying on their suitcases. The thick, red blanket was lying on the edge of the bed, and in the middle, on the white sheets, and on the white pillow where several red stains. And this was not everything. On the old mirror they could read two words, written with the same red color: Help me!

Danny and Lindsay looked at each other with pale faces.

"You see this too, right?" Lindsay asked.

"Yes."

"And it wasn't there when we left?"-

"No."

"Please tell me it isn't what I think it is."

"I wish I could." Danny replied. They both were already imagining what the red stains were. When they stepped a little closer, they could see it even clearer. Blood.

"Okay, that's it. I'll talk to the others now." Danny said determined. "Or do you need any more evidence?"

Lindsay shook her head. Danny was right. Now nobody could say that they were only imagining what was happening in this house. This was clear evidence that the story of the ghost in this house was no longer just a simple ghost story.


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's note: Thanks for reviewing! Here's the next chapter for you. Will the others believe in the ghost story?**

A few minutes later, Danny and Lindsay were standing in front of Mac's door again, knocking against it. When Mac opened the door, he was surprised to see his two colleagues.

"What can I do for you?" He asked, not really amused about the distraction, he had hoped to finally get some sleep.

"I'm sorry if we woke you up, Mac." Danny answered. "We need to tell you something. You and the others. In our room."

"Why?" Mac asked confused.

"We'll tell you when the others are awake, too. It's important. So, can you wake up Peyton while we'll go to the others?"

After they had woken up their other friends, the group met outside of Danny's and Lindsay's bedroom.

"Okay, what's going on here? Why do you two wake us up in the middle of the night?" Flack asked, fighting hard against the wish to just close his eyes and fall asleep again.

"Well, we…we have to tell you about something." This time Lindsay said. It was the first time that she spoke. First she hadn't wanted that the others heard about what was happening, but now, after what they had found in their bedroom, Lindsay knew that Danny was right. When they wanted to solve this case, they needed their friends' help. It wasn't easy, but now they had evidence. And so she told their friends what had happened.

"Since we were on the highway, driving through this area, I had a bad feeling. I didn't know where this came from, but it was there. I knew that something would happen, and then our car broke down. But this was just the beginning. We went to this house here, and this strange feeling became stronger and stronger. First I wasn't sure if it had something to do with this house, but when we entered it, I could clearly feel that there's this tension, it's sticking everywhere. It's in every inch of this house, and especially in these pictures. And this was not enough. I suddenly could feel things, a cold breeze, although every window was closed, and the touch of a hand, although nobody was there. And then…then I…I heard a voice talking to me. I thought I was getting totally crazy, but…but I wasn't, because then Danny heard it, too. The voice, a female voice, said 'Help me'. We didn't know what to do, and so we talked to you, Mac. You remember what you told us about this house? The story about this two women? Well, Danny and I don't think that it's just a ghost story. Not anymore. These things are really happening. And we have evidence for that."

After Lindsay had finished, she looked excited at her colleagues. What would they say? Would they think that they were totally crazy? Would they believe them? One thing was clear, everyone of them was now fully awake. They all were looking at them with huge eyes, and Lindsay wasn't sure what they were thinking.

"You have evidence for that?" Mac then broke the silence, and to Lindsay's surprise he had a serious look on his face.

"Yes." Danny answered. "It's in our room, and we both saw it. That's why we woke you up."

"You have evidence that there's a ghost in this house?" Adam asked, not sure if he was awake or still dreaming.

"Yes." Lindsay replied, pointing at their room. "And if you don't believe us, just go in there."

"I think this would be a good idea." Flack said. He also was surprised by what his two friends had told them. But he didn't know why the two should lie, they never did. "What do you think?"

"I think, we'll go in there now." Mac said, walking over to the door of the bedroom. The others followed him, more or less hesitating. They all thought that this was an incredible story, but they also knew that they could believe their co-workers.

When Mac opened the door, Danny and Lindsay shared a short look. They both were nervous, maybe even a little afraid. They knew what they had seen in this room, the blood definitely had been there. But what if it was gone again? Who knew if it still was there?

One after the other entered the room, until they all, Danny and Lindsay included, were standing in the huge bedroom. None of them was talking a word. To Danny's and Lindsay's relief, the blood stains and the words on the mirror were still there. With pale faces, the group was looking at what they had found.

"Do you believe us now?" Danny asked. Nods from all of the others were his response.

"When did you find that?" Mac asked, stepping closer to the mirror, while the others inspected the red stains on the bed.

"When we came back after we have talked to you." Lindsay answered. "It hadn't been there before."

"And this voice, the woman said 'Help me'?"

"Yes. She did."

"And what exactly do think why this is happening?" Mac asked, totally confused. He had never believed in the story about this house. But now?

Lindsay sighed, throwing a pleading look at Danny, who was standing close to her. He rested one of his hands on her back. This whole situation was confusing for all of them.

"Well, after you told us the story about the sisters, we think that maybe one of them, Mary or Ellen, is talking to us. Maybe she wants that we help her to finally solve this old case. Why else should she say that?" He said.

"That sounds logical." Mac agreed to their surprise. Then he looked over to Hawkes, who was inspecting the bed. "What do you think, Hawkes? What did you find over there?"

"Well, it definitely looks like blood." He answered. "But what is this for a story you are talking about? Maybe you should tell us what you know about this house, too."

Mac nodded. In a few short sentences he told them the story about the two sisters who had lived in the house before and that one of them one day was gone and was never found.

"What a sad story." Peyton said. "And you two think that one of them is talking to you?"

"Yes." Lindsay answered. She was relieved about her friends' reaction. None of them had told them that they don't believe them. None of them was thinking that they were crazy. "The case was never solved. Mary found the blood, and she knew that something must have happened, but they never found Ellen. I think, maybe the woman now wants that we find out what really happened, and maybe also where Ellen is."

"So that the ghost in this house can finally rest in peace." Peyton added and Lindsay nodded. "Okay, I don't know, what you think, but I'll help you."

"Me, too." The others agreed.

Lindsay threw a short glance at Danny, who was smiling at her. He had known that they would help them. Lindsay had already been glad that Danny was believing her, especially after he had heard the voice, too, and after he had told her that he wanted to help her with finding out what had happened so many years ago. But now their friends wanted to help them, too. And together they would uncover the secret of this mysterious house.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's note: Thanks for reviewing! The team wants to finally solve this hundred years old case. What will they find out?**

**Thanks to Mariekjj for beta'ing!**

"Okay, so we want to solve this case, right? And how do you want to do that?" Adam asked. "I mean, this happened around hundred years ago, and I'm sure nobody saved evidence, we have no witnesses, we have nothing. And I think, none of us had thought about taking our kits with us."

"As much as I want to help you, Adam is right." Stella agreed with an excusing look.

"Yes, I know," Lindsay replied and sighed. This was the problem. She was sure that solving this case was the reason why she and Danny had heard this voice, but without any evidence, this would be impossible. But before she could response more, she got support from an unexpected side.

"Sure, it would be easier with our kits," Hawkes said. "But, well, a hundred years ago, they didn't have the possibilities we have today, and they managed to solve cases anyway. And who knows, Mac said that Mary was desperate because the police didn't find her sister, maybe she tried to find her by herself, and maybe she collected information about this case. We just have to find it."

"Oh, that's a great idea." Lindsay agreed. She hadn't thought about that before. "I think we should start searching for information. Maybe we're lucky. And maybe we can also find out something about these blood stains on the bed." She turned around to Mac, who was still standing at the mirror. "What do you say?"

"I say that's a good idea." Mac answered. He couldn't help but smile when he saw the enthusiasm in her eyes. He still couldn't believe that this story might be true, but where did this blood come from? "As far as I know, Mary indeed tried to find her sister on her own. I'm sure she must have had information about what could have happened to her sister. I'd say we build groups again and start searching. Look at everything you can find and what can maybe have to do with Mary's sister. We'll meet here later again."

"Okay." The others agreed.

After building groups, three of these groups left the room to search for some hints of what had happened so many years ago, while Peyton and Hawkes stayed in the bedroom to look for the blood stains and possible other evidence.

"Okay, where do you want to look?" Danny asked after leaving the room.

"I don't know." Lindsay said. "I wish she would give us another hint. Lets go to the room where…"

"What?" Danny asked when Lindsay suddenly stopped. "Hey, are you okay? What happened?" And again Lindsay didn't react to him. She didn't move, her eyes focusing on something. "Lindsay? Lindsay what is over there?"

Danny stepped next to her, trying to find out what she was looking at. Then he looked at Lindsay again. It seemed as if she didn't notice his presence. And then he felt something. First he didn't know what it was, it was cool, like a light wind blowing, which became stronger and cooler with every second. Danny needed a moment to realize what he was feeling, until he remembered something Lindsay had told him earlier. The breeze. The cold breeze she had felt earlier. Danny threw a short glance at the door and the windows, but they were all closed. He wondered if Lindsay was feeling this, too, and if this was the reason why she didn't react. He tried to find out where the breeze was coming from. It was the direction Lindsay was staring at.

And then it was gone again, as suddenly as it had appeared. Lindsay shook her head, trying to clear her mind, before she turned around to look at Danny.

"I felt it again, this…"

"This cold breeze, right?" Danny answered. "I know, I felt it, too, it was coming from over there."

Lindsay eyes widened in surprise. "What, you felt it, too?"

Danny nodded. "Yes. Looks like someone wants to get our attention. Maybe this is the hint you have wished for. We should look what's in the room over there."

Lindsay just nodded, following Danny. She was surprised, first he heard the voice, now he felt the breeze.

When they left the hallway, another corridor lead them to a big, wooden door. Danny and Lindsay hesitated for a moment, before Danny pushed down the door handle. The door went open and exposed a huge room.

"Wow." Lindsay just said. Danny nodded in agreement.

The room was huge, almost as big as the hallway, on the one side they found two thick, red couches, a small coffee table and a tall candle holder. But what caught their attention most was the giant shelf on the other side of the room, full of old books. Danny and Lindsay shared a short look. Was the needed information in these books? If yes, much work was awaiting them.

Together the two walked over to the shelf. Taking one book after the other, they tried to find out what they needed to know, although they weren't even sure what they wanted to know.

Then a book, looking much older and more often used than the others, caught Lindsay's attention. She carefully took the book in her hands, opening the gray, dusky cover. Yellowed pages, filled with a handwritten text, appeared. Although Lindsay hadn't read a single word yet, she knew that this was the book they were looking for.

"Danny, look what I found." She said, her eyes not taking away from the book. Danny appeared at her side, looking over her shoulder.

"What is it?" He asked.

"I have no idea." Lindsay answered, opening the book at the first page. After reading the few words on this side, the two knew that in what they were holding in their hands maybe was the important hint.

Diary of Mary Pearson, 1907 

"Mary's diary." Lindsay whispered, suddenly feeling uncomfortable while looking into this special book. "Do you think we should…?"

"We have to." Danny answered.

And together they went over to one of the couches to read in Mary's diary, searching for answers, hoping to find some more informations to finally find out what had happened.


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's note: Thanks for your reviews, I'm always looking forward to them! Lets see what they find in the diary! **

Danny and Lindsay were sitting on one of the couches. Lindsay was holding Mary's diary in her hands. Although she knew that they could find informations about Ellen in this book, she was still hesitating to read it. But obviously she or her sister had wanted that they found this diary and so Lindsay opened the next page.

They found out that Mary had written in this little book every day. From what they read they could tell that Mary and Ellen had been very close, living together for almost their whole life, doing almost everything together. They also found out that somewhere along the line Mary had had a boyfriend for a short time, until she broke up with him again, but she didn't mention this relationship often, it seemed as if it hadn't played an important role in Mary's life. It looked like Ellen had been the closest person to her.

"It must have been horrible for her when she lost Ellen," Lindsay whispered, impressed by the strong relationship of the two sisters.

Then they reached a part in the diary where Mary suddenly had stopped her daily entries. The next entry was a week after the last. Danny and Lindsay shared a short glance. Why had Mary stopped writing for a whole week? Could it be that this had been the time of Ellen's disappearance? When Lindsay read the first sentences of the next entry she realized that she had been right.

_"One week has passed since Ellen disappeared. I searched for her. I talked to the police. But without any success. The police told me they would try everything to find her, but they still have no hints where she could be. I'm scared. They tried to calm me down. But I know that something happened. I can feel it."_

Nine short sentences, written in wavy letters, but every word was full of emotions Lindsay could feel so clearly. She looked up at Danny, telling from his gaze that he was feeling the same. Lindsay's heart started to beat faster and faster; they were getting closer to their target with every page. She could feel Danny's hand resting on her shoulder, feeling his support.

Together they read the following pages where Mary described how the police tried to find Ellen or at least hints that might tell them what had happened to her. But to Mary's and their disappointment, the police wasn't successful and after a month of searching, a month full of hoping and praying for Mary, they gave up.

_"Today the police told me that they couldn't help me anymore. But I'll not give up, I can't give up. Once Ellen and I had promised to take care of each other. I wasn't there to protect her. The least I can do is finding her or what has happened to her. I'll not give up on finding my beloved sister."_

Lindsay could feel tears rising in her eyes when she rested her head against Danny's shoulder. She could feel the pain of this woman.

"She must have been so desperate because she couldn't find the person she loved more than anything else in the world," she said with a low voice.

"I can understand her," Danny answered, kissing her onto the top of her head, pulling her a little closer. "Looks like Mac was right, she indeed has started to find her sister on her own."

Lindsay nodded. "Yes. Lets see what she found out."

Lindsay turned the page again, when suddenly a small, folded paper fell out of the book. Danny picked it up and opened it.

"What is it?" Lindsay asked.

"Looks like it's a plan of a house. Can you see that? All the rooms, and here, looks like these are doors. And here are stairs." Danny answered. When he realized what he was looking at, his eyes went wide. "Oh, wow, do you have any idea which house this is?"

When Lindsay shook her head, he explained, "That's this house here. Look, this is the entrance, and here are the stairs. Here's this room, and over there is the living room. And here are the bedrooms."

Now Lindsay could see it, too. Danny was indeed right. They were looking at a plan of this house, obviously Mary had made it, because they found a few notes in the same handwritten letters like the ones from the diary. And then something else caught Lindsay's attention. There was a small drawing in one of the rooms.

"Look." Lindsay said, pointing at the drawing. It was showing a bed, a cupboard and a small table with two chairs. And on the bed they could notice several red stains.

"Let me guess. This is the room where Mary found Ellen's blood. I wonder which room…" Danny said when he suddenly stopped.

"What?" Lindsay asked.

"This is our room, Lindsay." He answered, still staring onto the small paper. "Here, the stairs, and look at the doors. This is definitely our bedroom."

When Lindsay noticed that he was right, she shivered, grabbing Danny's hand. It was the room they had chosen. Danny and Lindsay shared a short look, needing no words to know that they were thinking the same. Now they finally understood everything. Why Lindsay had felt this breeze for the first time in this room, why she had felt this touch. She had already heard the woman's voice in the hallway, but the first time she had heard the 'help me' had been in this room, too. And now the blood stains. Something had happened to Ellen, and it had happened in exactly this room.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's note: Thanks for reviewing:)**

**Thanks to Mariekjj for beta'ing!**

"But I wonder why they found nothing, absolutely nothing," Danny said after they had looked at the paper for a while, "I mean, look at these blood stains, I can't believe that someone murders a person, who loses so much blood, and then brings her out of the room, maybe even out of the house and doesn't leave any evidence. And I'm pretty sure that she was murdered, according to the amount of blood we found. How is this possible, how is it possible that they didn't found any evidence?"

"I don't know," Lindsay answered, "How long had Mary been away? She wrote that she had been away for around two hours. That's enough time to murder someone, to take the body away and to clean everything. But why didn't the murderer change the sheets?"

"Maybe we should look what else Mary found out," Danny suggested and Lindsay nodded.

Together they continued reading the diary. They found out that Mary had asked the police to give her all the informations they had, and the police indeed had helped her. Mary searched everywhere, in the house, in the garden, even in the near forest, but without any success. And then they reached the part of the diary where Mary noticed that something strange was happening in her house. She mentioned the cold breeze, which both Danny and Lindsay, had felt as well, then she started to hear a whisper, which she could understand better and better until she could hear what the voice was saying. And who was talking to her.

_"I know, nobody would believe me, but I know that I'm hearing this voice talking to me. It's not the wind. It's a voice. Ellen's voice. I know that it's her, I would always recognize her voice. She's asking me to help her, but I don't know what to do. I tried everything, I searched everywhere, but I still don't know what happened. I want to help her, but I can't._

_Today Carl visited me, he asked me for a second chance, and he told me that he would be there for me to get through all this. I don't know why, but when he was there, I felt this cold breeze and I heard Ellen's voice talking to me for almost the whole time. And when we went upstairs to Ellen's room, the sheets on her bed were bloody again. Carl didn't see it, but I'm sure this really happened. I wish I knew what she wants to tell me with that, or why else she's doing that."_

"Carl? This was her ex-boyfriend, right?" Danny asked. "She hadn't mentioned him that often before, it seemed as if he wasn't important for her. I wonder why he still tries to get together with her again."

The only response was a nod from Lindsay, who turned the page.

_"Today Carl visited me again. He said he is concerned and he wanted to know if he could help me. I told him that he wouldn't believe me anyway, but he promised to always be there for me, and so I finally talked about what's happening in my house. I was expecting that he would laugh at me, but he just said that I had to go through a lot in the last few weeks. And then he asked me if I want to move into his house for a while, he thought that it would be the best for me, and that I'd need some time away from here, because everything is reminding me of Ellen. Maybe he's right."_

"He wanted her to move into his house?" Danny said after they had read the entry. "I wonder if she really did that." He looked at Lindsay, who was still staring onto the page they had just read. "Hey, are you okay?"

"What? Oh yes, sure," Lindsay answered, looking up at him. But as much as she tried to hide it, Danny could see the thoughtful look in her eyes.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked.

"Well, I'm just thinking about Carl's part in the whole story."

"Carl's part?"

"Yes. I mean, as far as we know Mary broke up with him. We didn't read much about him, just that they broke up. Maybe he didn't want to accept that, and that's why…"

"But why would he kill Ellen?"

"Maybe she was the reason why Mary broke up with him," Lindsay answered. When she saw that Danny still didn't know what she wanted to say, she explained.

"Don't you remember the entry she wrote about that?" she asked, searching in the diary for said entry. When she found it, she showed it to Danny.

_"Carl and I are not together anymore. I'm a little sad about that because he is such a nice man, a real gentleman. But he didn't accept that I don't want to move together with him. Ellen and I live together here. If he doesn't accept that, I can't be together with him."_

"Do you know understand what I mean? Carl wanted that Mary moved together with him, but she didn't want that because she wanted to live in this house together with her sister. Carl didn't accept that, and after Mary had broken up with him, he maybe wanted to get her back. And he thought that killing Ellen would solve his problem," Lindsay said, glad to see Danny nodding.

"Yes, that sounds logical," he replied, "and, well, maybe that's also the reason why Mary could hear and feel Ellen's presence so much when Carl was there to visit her."

"Exactly."

"So, we think that Carl killed Ellen because he wanted Mary back, and because he also wanted her to move together with him, which was only possible when Ellen wasn't there anymore, right?" Danny asked.

"Yes," Lindsay answered, "I'm sure it was like this. Now we know who could be Ellen's killer. The question now is- what exactly happened to her? And where is she?"


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's note: Sorry that I haven't updated this story for a while, but I needed some new ideas, this story isn't easy to write. So, here's finally the next chapter!**

"You're right with that," Danny agreed. "But look, she had helped us so many times to find out all this, I'm sure she'll help us again."

Lindsay nodded. "Lets see what else Mary had written."

And so they continued reading the diary. They found out, that Mary indeed had moved in with Carl. She couldn't bear hearing her sister's voice anymore. She had tried to sell the house, but hadn't been successful. Most people already knew what had happened and didn't want to buy it. And so the house was empty since Mary had moved in with Carl.

After they had read the last entry in the diary, Danny and Lindsay went back to the bedroom, where the others were. On their way, Lindsay was very quiet. The story about Mary and Ellen was so sad, especially for her who could feel Ellen's presence so much. When she had first entered this house she had already known that something would happen. She had wondered why Ellen had chosen her for helping her. Maybe Ellen had already expected that she was believing in what she was feeling and hearing. And when Danny had told her that he was believing Lindsay, Ellen had started to make him feel her presence as well.

Lindsay still was incredibly relieved that Danny had never thought that she was just crazy and imagining what was happening around them. He had believed her from the beginning on and he had supported her. Since the two of them were together, Lindsay had known that their relationship was something special, different from all the others she had had yet. And she had been right. She knew he was trusting in her and she was trusting in him as well. He was there, no matter what happened. This was a good feeling.

A light smile appeared on her face when she remembered one sentence he had said while they had read the diary.

"_I can understand her."_ He had said after she had told him that Mary must have been so desperate when she couldn't find out where her sister was. He understood Mary because he could imagine how it would be when someone was expecting that something bad happened to the person he or she loved more than anything else in the world. Because he would feel the same when something like this would happen to her.

When they walked up the stairs to the bedroom, Lindsay moved closer to Danny, taking his hand in hers. When he looked down at her, she smiled. Then she rested her head against his shoulder.

When Danny had felt Lindsay's hand taking his, he had been surprised, almost hesitating first. He hadn't forgotten that their co-workers and their boss were upstairs, and that they could easily see them like this. But when he looked down at her, he saw it, her smile and the look she gave him. He needed no more words from her to know what she was thinking. And what she wanted to show him with this little gesture.

Lindsay had been the one who had suggested to keep their relationship as a secret. He had agreed with that, although he had liked to show the whole world that he was together with her, for him the most wonderful woman he had ever met. But she hadn't been ready for that yet, and also a little afraid about Mac's reaction, and so he had accepted that. He could wait.

When Danny now had looked into her eyes, he saw that something had changed. And he instantly knew what this was. She was ready now. She was ready to show that they were together. Danny couldn't help but think that the events in this house had two good sides. On the one side they could finally help Ellen so that she could rest in peace. And on the other side it had brought him and Lindsay closer to each other.

While they had read Mary's entries in the diary, he had noticed that he could totally understand her feelings. Until now he had never really loved a woman he had been together with. Until now. Now he was together with Lindsay, and he loved her, he loved her more than he had ever loved another person before. She was his everything and if something like this would happen to her, he would also be desperate, trying everything to find her.

"We really have to solve this case," Danny then said when they reached the first floor. "For both, Mary and Ellen. They deserve it."

"You're right," Lindsay agreed, moving even a little closer to him. She knew what was going on in his mind, she even didn't have to look him in the eyes to see it. And together and with the help of their friends they would finally find out what had really happened.


	14. Chapter 14

When Danny and Lindsay reached their room again, they could already hear the others speaking.

"Did anyone of you find anything?" Mac asked.

"No, nothing," Stella answered. "We looked everywhere, but nothing. There're several paintings of the women everywhere, but no further informations. We even looked through a few books we found, but there was nothing as well."

"And the others?"

"Nothing," the rest said.

"But we found something," Lindsay said, causing the others to turn around to look at her and Danny.

"What did you find?" Mac asked.

Lindsay showed the others the diary they had found downstairs.

"We found this diary. It's Mary's diary. There were a few informations about how she found out that her sister disappeared. She has looked for her for a long time, and the police helped her as well, but nobody found the slightest hint where she could be."

"So actually we still have nothing?" Stella asked.

"Not exactly," Danny replied. "We found a map in the diary. It's a plan of this house. It seems as if Mary had found blood stains in this room here, at exactly the same places they're now. We think that what ever had happened to Ellen, it had happened here. And we found out that Mary had had a boyfriend. His name was Carl. She broke up with him because he wanted her to move together with him, but Mary didn't want that, because she didn't want to leave Ellen alone. Carl didn't accept that and so they broke up. After Ellen had disappeared, Carl suddenly came back to her and convinced her to move in with him."

"So you think that this Carl could have something to do with what has happened to Ellen?" Flack asked.

"Yes, that's what we think."

The others shared a short glance, until Mac spoke again, "I think, this indeed could be possible. The problem is- we have no evidence. We even don't know where Ellen is."

"Yes, that's true," Danny agreed with him. It was sad that although they thought that they had a suspect, there was no way to find out what really had happened. But especially since he was feeling what Lindsay had felt the whole time, he wanted to finally solve this case. He looked at Lindsay to see her reaction, but she didn't pay attention to them. She seemed to be deep in her thoughts again.

"Lindsay?" he said, walking over to her. "Lindsay? Are you okay? What are you thinking about?"

"I can't believe that after all we have found out, we still can't prove what has happened," she answered. "I wish, she'd give us a hint again."

"Maybe she…" Danny started, when he suddenly noticed something, something on the ground he hadn't seen before. "What's that?"

"What?" Lindsay asked, looking into the direction he was pointing at, just to see what he meant. Her eyes went wide. "Oh my god."

On the ground, which had been clean the whole time, they suddenly could see prints. Foot prints. Bloody foot prints. And they lead out of the room.

Danny and Lindsay turned around to their friends to make sure if they were seeing the prints as well, and from their pale faces they could tell that they did. Without waiting for any response or reaction, Lindsay suddenly turned around again and left the room.

"Hey, wait, what are you doing?" Danny shouted.

"I'm following the prints. Maybe this is the sign we're waiting for," Lindsay shouted back.

"I think, that's a good idea," Mac said. The others nodded in agreement, and so they quickly followed Lindsay.

The foot prints lead them almost through the whole house, until they ended in front of a bookshelf. But before anyone could say anything, Lindsay already started to move it away. Without commenting, Danny helped her, followed by Flack and Adam. Together they managed to remove the bookshelf and discovered another door.

Danny and Lindsay shared a short glance. They needed no words to communicate. And so Danny stepped backwards a bit, just to kick against the door, as hard as possible. The door flew open, surprisingly easy, revealing a secret corridor.

Without hesitating, Lindsay grabbed the flashlight she was still carrying and entered the corridor, Danny of course instantly following her. After a short moment, the others decided to do the same.

The corridor was dark and very small, but Lindsay didn't pay any attention to that. She had only one target. Finding Ellen.

They still could see the foot prints. They lead them further and further into the corridor, until they suddenly stopped.

When Lindsay suddenly stopped in front of him, Danny almost ran into her.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked. When she didn't answer, he stepped next to her, just to see what she had discovered. "Hey, hurry, we found something!" he shouted to the others, who had been much slower, much more hesitating.

When the rest of the team arrived, Lindsay already had knelt down next to a bundle, lying on the ground, wrapped into an old blanket. She carefully removed the blanket. What she found under it let her eyes widen. She just stared at it, not able to speak. She didn't know if she should be shocked or relieved.

In front of her was lying a body, and from what she could tell, it was a female body. Because of the blanket and the corridor, which had cut the body off the air, made it possible for her to see that.

"Looks like we found her," Danny said quietly, looking at Lindsay. "Now we have to find out who did that to her."

But she wasn't listening. She had discovered something else. The woman had closed on of her hands into a tight fist. She carefully opened the fingers, just to discover that she was right. The woman was holding something. Something that maybe could reveal who the killer was.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Thanks for reviewing! I'm sorry I needed so long to update the last few chapters. This is the last chapter of the story. Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed.**

"What is it?" Danny asked, when Lindsay carefully opened the woman's hand.

She took the item in one of her hands, examining it in the pale light of Danny's flashlight, while the others approached her, kneeling down next to them.

"It's an amulet," Stella announced, her eyes focused onto the small, golden jewel. "Maybe from Ellen?"

"Or from her murderer," Mac said.

Lindsay didn't respond. Instead of that, she carefully tried to open it. The moment the inside of the amulet was revealed, she read the two words, written in wavy letters.

"Carl Johnson," she read. She looked up, meeting Danny's gaze who was looking at her. "It has to be Carl's amulet."

Danny nodded. "And because she was holding it so tightly, we can be sure that she grabbed it before she died."

"Yes," Mac agreed with him. "Maybe he attacked her and while fighting him, she grabbed it and never let go of it again."

"Maybe she also grabbed it because she wanted that the people who'd find her, would find out who had done this to her," Stella added.

Lindsay just nodded at what her friends were saying. Now, after finding these last piece, she was pretty sure that she knew what had happened.

And while remaining staring at the little, golden amulet, she started to explain what had happened the day Ellen had been killed.

"Carl must have watched them for a while. He had never accepted that Mary had broken up with him because of her sister, because she didn't want to leave her sister alone. He wanted her back, and in his eyes, killing Ellen was the only opportunity. He watched them, and when he was sure that Mary wasn't at home, he went over to the house. He somehow managed to get into the house. He searched for Ellen and found her in the bedroom. When he approached her, he must have woken up her. Carl attacked her, according to the blood maybe with a knife, and she fought him back. And while doing this, she grabbed the amulet. He didn't notice that, and after he had killed her, he searched for a place where he could hide her body. Maybe he even knew about the secret passage. He hid her and then left the house again."

Lindsay looked at her friends, who just nodded in agreement. None of them had to add anything. They all were sure that it must have happened in exactly this way. Carl had killed Ellen to get Mary back, and sadly had been successful in the end. But he couldn't have known, that around 100 years later, a few detectives from New York would come into this house and, with the help of Ellen's ghost, would solve this old case and would find out what he had done.

After they had left the secret passage again, the eight decided to bury Ellen's body in the huge garden behind the house so that she finally could rest in piece.

When they returned to their bedrooms a while later, the sun was already rising again. The eight friends went back into the room where Ellen had been killed for a last time, none of them shocked when they saw that the blood stains on the bed were gone again. Only the mirror was still covered with two words. _Thank you._

After grabbing their suitcases, they left the house again to head back to their car. All the way through the forest, none of them spoke a word. What had happened in the house was still present in their minds, and none of them would ever forget it. They still were impressed by the fact that they had just solved a 100 years old case. And not on their own, but with the help of a ghost, who had shown them the needed evidence to find out who had killed her.

When they reached the car again, they surprised realized that they could start the engine without any problems. They put the suitcases back into the car and continued driving to their actual target- a few days off to relax. And after what had just happened the night before, they all needed some time to relax.

While they were already driving on the highway again, Lindsay was lying in Danny's arms, deep in her thoughts. She had been the first one who had felt the special tension in the house. She had instantly known that something was going on in this house. And she had been right. She was glad that they had been able to solve the old case; for Mary and for Ellen. And the night in the house also had had another good effect. Lindsay knew that she could totally trust in Danny, and that he'd always be there for her. And because of the shared experiences, the team had gotten even closer. They needed no words to agree that they wouldn't talk about what had happened, to nobody. But they'd never forget it, and this night they had spent together would always be something special for them.


End file.
